A/N: Wow, okay, wow. First off, thanks to EVERYONE for reviewing! It means
SO much!!!! Next, I'm sorry for taking so damn long to update (again). But
I've had school and a lot of other things (my Great Uncle died and my
birthday was in April). So yeah, I've been busy. I hope you can forgive me.
(I'll be giving you 2 chapters and maybe a 3rd one today.) As for a
question.... Melissa (charmedsisters_30@hotmail.): Yes, there will be a
fourth installment that I'm planning to call, "The Blessed Ones". BTW, did
anyone notice that "Charmed" decided to call next week's episode, "Reality
Check" (at least that was the T.V. title) and that was my title for Chapter
16?
Together Forever As One
Chapter 17: A World Of Terror
Prue bit down on her bottom lip, in total shock, drawing a drop of blood. She quickly covered her lip with her trembling hands. She reached out for Paige.
Paige had her eyes fixed in front of her, but through the corner of her eye, she could see Prue reaching for comfort. Paige reached out, taking Prue's hand.
A woman was standing in the middle of the living room, she'd just walked in from the hallway. She wore a light brown dress, it was more ragged than anything and looked more like a burlap sack with holes for arms and legs that had been pulled out of a trash heap though. She stood shaking in the center of the room. Her finger and toe nails were chipped and broken; she wore no shoes. Her skin was covered in black, blue, purple, yellow, and brown bruises. There were some welts on her arms and face. Dried blood, cuts, and burns were all over her body. Some of the cuts even appeared to be quite infected. There were chains that bound her wrists and ankles; they were just long enough to allow her to walk and do some things with her hands. The woman had black hair that was a little longer than her shoulder and looked like it had been dimmed over time, the skin that wasn't bruised or cut was pale, and the woman's blue eyes seemed to scream for help. Her hair was matted, tangled, with dried blood and dirt in it. But throughout all of the torture that she had no doubt been put through and no matter how far gone she looked, one thing was for certain; this woman was Prudence Halliwell.
The man walked over to the other Prue, roughly grabbing her by the arm and shoving her to the floor. "I thought I told you to hurry?!" He roared, as his face seemed to get much redder.
"Y..you did...s..Sir..." Alternate Prue whispered.
The man pulled his arm back and swiftly brought it back down, striking Alternate Prue across the face. "You call me, 'Master'! That's what I am, you're Master! And who gave you permission to speak anyhow?! Hmmm?! I never told you to speak!" He roared, though he seemed happy to yell at Alternate Prue.
Prue's eyes were wide as she stared in complete horror. She covered her mouth to hold back a scream, as she saw blood begin to pour from Alternate Prue's nose.
Paige's eyes were flashing with fury as she began to open her mouth.
Prue shook her head quickly and cupped Paige's mouth with her hand. She shook her head, knowing that they should wait.
The man pulled a cigar from his pocket. "I'm going out! Those dishes better be washed by the time I return!" He yelled, with no emotion in his voice. Then he roughly grabbed Alternate Prue's face and jerked her head towards where he was pointing with his other hand. "See?! I want all of them so clean that I can see my face in them!" He yelled, as he pointed to the mountain of dirty dishes in the sink. "Do you understand?!" He asked, in a hateful way.
Alternate Prue nodded and winced, as her face was being squeezed.
The man released his grip and then stormed back down the hall. Then left, with a loud slam of the door.
Alternate Prue huddled in the corner of the room, holding her head back, and covering her nose; hoping that the bleeding would stop soon. Then her large blue eyes filled with hot, salty tears and she began to sob.
Prue and Paige waited for a few minutes, just listening to Alternate Prue sob.
'I think he is gone.' Paige thought.
Prue nodded. "Me too." She whispered, so only Paige could hear her.
'So, now?' Paige thought, eager to help Alternate Prue.
Prue nodded.
The 2 sisters slowly rose up and quietly moved out from behind the couch.
"Hello?" Paige asked, cautiously.
Alternate Prue's head swirled around and her eyes became wide. "W..wh..who a..are y..yy..you?!" She suttered, as she tried to hide the blood that was dripping from her nose. She stared at Paige and then at Prue. 'She looks like me...Sort of...' She thought.
"You're Prudence Halliwell, right?" Prue asked, as she stepped forward.
Alternate Prue scooted as far back to the wall as she could. "Wh..who are you?" She asked, again.
"We're not here to hurt you. To help...I'm Paige Halliwell. This is my older sister...." Paige said, in a calming tone.
Prue nodded. "Prudence Halliwell." She filled in, as she held out her hand.
"I..I'm..P..Prudence..." Alternate Prue whispered.
"So am I." Prue replied. "We have two sisters, Piper and Phoebe Halliwell." Prue said.
"H..how do you..k..kn..know about..P..Piper and...an..Phoebe?" Alternate Prue asked.
"Because, I'm you..or you're me. Whatever way, we're one in the same! You're a Charmed One; part of the Power of Three, right?" Prue asked.
"The..P..Power of...what?" Alternate Prue asked, but she was clearly lying.
Prue shook her head. "I can read your mind you know, I know you're lying about not knowing who the Power of Three is. Look..." Prue said. She waved her hand and telekinetically lifted a chair that was sitting in the corner of the room, into the air. Then with another wave of her hand, she made the chair float to the other side of the room, where she set it down. Then she closed her eyes and her body went limp.
In a ruby red flare, Astral Prue appeared in front of Alternate Prue. "And astral projection, just like you." She said. With that, she faded away again, in another ruby red flare.
Prue awoke and opened her eyes. "Believe me now?" She asked.
Alternate Prue hesitated for a moment. "You coulda st..stole those powers...real easily.." She muttered.
"Well, what about this?" Paige asked, as she orbed out, then orbed in on the other side of the room. "Hmmm?" She asked.
"A...wh..whitelighter?" Alternate Prue asked, in surprise.
"Only half. Like I said, I'm Prue's sister. I'm also half witch." Paige replied.
"Y..you're lying, they don't exist...it...it's forbidden." Alternate Prue replied.
"I was forbidden, doesn't mean I'm not real...Look, can a whitelighter do this?" Paige asked, as she looked over at the chair that Prue moved to the other side of the room. "Chair!" Paige yelled. The chair orbed out and then orbed in, in it's original spot, before Prue had moved it.
Alternate Prue stared in shock.
"Look, we need to know where we are...." Prue stated. "Paige orbed us out when we were going to save Pheebs and then we're here...." Prue said.
"Phoebe...Where is Phoebe?" Alternate Prue asked.
"We don't know where she is in this 'world'. What happened to her in 'your' world?" Paige asked.
"She...Phoebe...he did it to her!" Alternate Prue said, with hate in her tone.
"Who...did what?!" Prue asked, in alarm.
"Cole..Balthezor! He turned her evil..Just like him!" Alternate Prue replied.
Prue and Paige tightened their fists.
"And what about Piper?" Paige probed.
"Piper..." Alternate Prue whispered, as her eyes filled with tears. "Was taken captive...I don't know where she is now." She sobbed.
"And what about Paige?" Prue asked. She shook her head. "Wait, you don't know Paige yet..." Prue said, answering her own question.
"And Leo?!" Paige asked.
"Leo! Oh God, he's been trying to find Piper ever since we were taken!" Alternate Prue cried out.
Prue covered her mouth. "No...." She mumbled.
"We have to get you out of here...." Paige said, as she held out her hands. "Come on, both of you. I'll orb." She said.
"No..you can't..." Alternate Prue said, with a shake of her head.
"Why not?" Paige asked.
"Because, these chains keep me from using my powers or leaving this house without 'his' persmission." Alternate Prue replied.
"Who is, 'he'?" Paige asked.
"That man?" Prue asked.
"My....husband...." Alternate Prue replied, weakly. TO BE CONTINUED....
Together Forever As One
Chapter 17: A World Of Terror
Prue bit down on her bottom lip, in total shock, drawing a drop of blood. She quickly covered her lip with her trembling hands. She reached out for Paige.
Paige had her eyes fixed in front of her, but through the corner of her eye, she could see Prue reaching for comfort. Paige reached out, taking Prue's hand.
A woman was standing in the middle of the living room, she'd just walked in from the hallway. She wore a light brown dress, it was more ragged than anything and looked more like a burlap sack with holes for arms and legs that had been pulled out of a trash heap though. She stood shaking in the center of the room. Her finger and toe nails were chipped and broken; she wore no shoes. Her skin was covered in black, blue, purple, yellow, and brown bruises. There were some welts on her arms and face. Dried blood, cuts, and burns were all over her body. Some of the cuts even appeared to be quite infected. There were chains that bound her wrists and ankles; they were just long enough to allow her to walk and do some things with her hands. The woman had black hair that was a little longer than her shoulder and looked like it had been dimmed over time, the skin that wasn't bruised or cut was pale, and the woman's blue eyes seemed to scream for help. Her hair was matted, tangled, with dried blood and dirt in it. But throughout all of the torture that she had no doubt been put through and no matter how far gone she looked, one thing was for certain; this woman was Prudence Halliwell.
The man walked over to the other Prue, roughly grabbing her by the arm and shoving her to the floor. "I thought I told you to hurry?!" He roared, as his face seemed to get much redder.
"Y..you did...s..Sir..." Alternate Prue whispered.
The man pulled his arm back and swiftly brought it back down, striking Alternate Prue across the face. "You call me, 'Master'! That's what I am, you're Master! And who gave you permission to speak anyhow?! Hmmm?! I never told you to speak!" He roared, though he seemed happy to yell at Alternate Prue.
Prue's eyes were wide as she stared in complete horror. She covered her mouth to hold back a scream, as she saw blood begin to pour from Alternate Prue's nose.
Paige's eyes were flashing with fury as she began to open her mouth.
Prue shook her head quickly and cupped Paige's mouth with her hand. She shook her head, knowing that they should wait.
The man pulled a cigar from his pocket. "I'm going out! Those dishes better be washed by the time I return!" He yelled, with no emotion in his voice. Then he roughly grabbed Alternate Prue's face and jerked her head towards where he was pointing with his other hand. "See?! I want all of them so clean that I can see my face in them!" He yelled, as he pointed to the mountain of dirty dishes in the sink. "Do you understand?!" He asked, in a hateful way.
Alternate Prue nodded and winced, as her face was being squeezed.
The man released his grip and then stormed back down the hall. Then left, with a loud slam of the door.
Alternate Prue huddled in the corner of the room, holding her head back, and covering her nose; hoping that the bleeding would stop soon. Then her large blue eyes filled with hot, salty tears and she began to sob.
Prue and Paige waited for a few minutes, just listening to Alternate Prue sob.
'I think he is gone.' Paige thought.
Prue nodded. "Me too." She whispered, so only Paige could hear her.
'So, now?' Paige thought, eager to help Alternate Prue.
Prue nodded.
The 2 sisters slowly rose up and quietly moved out from behind the couch.
"Hello?" Paige asked, cautiously.
Alternate Prue's head swirled around and her eyes became wide. "W..wh..who a..are y..yy..you?!" She suttered, as she tried to hide the blood that was dripping from her nose. She stared at Paige and then at Prue. 'She looks like me...Sort of...' She thought.
"You're Prudence Halliwell, right?" Prue asked, as she stepped forward.
Alternate Prue scooted as far back to the wall as she could. "Wh..who are you?" She asked, again.
"We're not here to hurt you. To help...I'm Paige Halliwell. This is my older sister...." Paige said, in a calming tone.
Prue nodded. "Prudence Halliwell." She filled in, as she held out her hand.
"I..I'm..P..Prudence..." Alternate Prue whispered.
"So am I." Prue replied. "We have two sisters, Piper and Phoebe Halliwell." Prue said.
"H..how do you..k..kn..know about..P..Piper and...an..Phoebe?" Alternate Prue asked.
"Because, I'm you..or you're me. Whatever way, we're one in the same! You're a Charmed One; part of the Power of Three, right?" Prue asked.
"The..P..Power of...what?" Alternate Prue asked, but she was clearly lying.
Prue shook her head. "I can read your mind you know, I know you're lying about not knowing who the Power of Three is. Look..." Prue said. She waved her hand and telekinetically lifted a chair that was sitting in the corner of the room, into the air. Then with another wave of her hand, she made the chair float to the other side of the room, where she set it down. Then she closed her eyes and her body went limp.
In a ruby red flare, Astral Prue appeared in front of Alternate Prue. "And astral projection, just like you." She said. With that, she faded away again, in another ruby red flare.
Prue awoke and opened her eyes. "Believe me now?" She asked.
Alternate Prue hesitated for a moment. "You coulda st..stole those powers...real easily.." She muttered.
"Well, what about this?" Paige asked, as she orbed out, then orbed in on the other side of the room. "Hmmm?" She asked.
"A...wh..whitelighter?" Alternate Prue asked, in surprise.
"Only half. Like I said, I'm Prue's sister. I'm also half witch." Paige replied.
"Y..you're lying, they don't exist...it...it's forbidden." Alternate Prue replied.
"I was forbidden, doesn't mean I'm not real...Look, can a whitelighter do this?" Paige asked, as she looked over at the chair that Prue moved to the other side of the room. "Chair!" Paige yelled. The chair orbed out and then orbed in, in it's original spot, before Prue had moved it.
Alternate Prue stared in shock.
"Look, we need to know where we are...." Prue stated. "Paige orbed us out when we were going to save Pheebs and then we're here...." Prue said.
"Phoebe...Where is Phoebe?" Alternate Prue asked.
"We don't know where she is in this 'world'. What happened to her in 'your' world?" Paige asked.
"She...Phoebe...he did it to her!" Alternate Prue said, with hate in her tone.
"Who...did what?!" Prue asked, in alarm.
"Cole..Balthezor! He turned her evil..Just like him!" Alternate Prue replied.
Prue and Paige tightened their fists.
"And what about Piper?" Paige probed.
"Piper..." Alternate Prue whispered, as her eyes filled with tears. "Was taken captive...I don't know where she is now." She sobbed.
"And what about Paige?" Prue asked. She shook her head. "Wait, you don't know Paige yet..." Prue said, answering her own question.
"And Leo?!" Paige asked.
"Leo! Oh God, he's been trying to find Piper ever since we were taken!" Alternate Prue cried out.
Prue covered her mouth. "No...." She mumbled.
"We have to get you out of here...." Paige said, as she held out her hands. "Come on, both of you. I'll orb." She said.
"No..you can't..." Alternate Prue said, with a shake of her head.
"Why not?" Paige asked.
"Because, these chains keep me from using my powers or leaving this house without 'his' persmission." Alternate Prue replied.
"Who is, 'he'?" Paige asked.
"That man?" Prue asked.
"My....husband...." Alternate Prue replied, weakly. TO BE CONTINUED....